Book Review

LADYKILLER by Katherine Wood
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When a young woman vanishes from her remote Greek island estate, her best friend races to find her, using clues found in the explosive manuscript she left behind.

This book was really good!! it flipped back-and-forth between present day Abby’s story and the manuscript written by her best friend Gia… it was so twisty and cryptic and it was one of those books where you didn’t know who to trust!! Perfect book to read this summer at the beach or pool that captured my attention right away!

This was a fun, easy read. The perfect beach/vacation book. There’s enough to keep you intrigued and wanting to read more, but it’s not so gripping that you must read it in one sitting. I really liked getting two points of view and reading the manuscript. Open endings aren’t my favorite so I do wish the epilogue had more resolution or a final twist to make it more exciting. Overall 3.5 stars and a fun read.

A little summer thriller? Yes, please. First, because I didn’t realize this right away—Katherine Wood wrote The Lions Den and The Siren, which are both popular books.

LADYKILLER takes place in two POVs — Gia, newly married but missing in action, leaves behind a manuscript and its pages form one narrative. Abby, Gia’s childhood best friend, is eager to discover where Gia is after she flies to Greece only to have Gia no show. Abby’s search forms the second narrative. The issue? A lot of things aren’t adding up. A sexy romp through Greece, you aren’t sure who to believe, and just when you think you know something shifts your perspective.

By the end, I wasn’t sure I knew what the truth was… but that was part of the fun!

Read if you like:
✨ The Guest List by Lucy Foley
💗 psychological thrillers
🔥 dual POVs

Amazing setting! I loved the descriptions of how the other half live in Greece. Greece is now on my bucket list.

We start the story with two POV’s; Abby, the best friend of the uber wealthy Gia and Gia, who point of view is told by chapters in her manuscript. There’s a mystery at the beginning and lots of secrecy. I was a little frustrated towards the middle of the book. We kept getting snippets of the past and what really happened, but then it was pulled away at the last minute.

As Abby begins to fear for Gia’s safety from her violent husband the book takes off and doesn’t stop until the twist. Lots of drama, secrets and seduction. Still not sure how I feel about the ending.

I don’t read quite as many thrillers as I used to, but I was drawn to this one because it’s partly set in Sweden and Greece and involves part of the story being told through a novel manuscript. Ladykiller follows the two very different lives of best friends Abby and Gia when one of them vanishes, leaving only a manuscript to lay down a trail of clues. Initially, I was absolutely drawn into this story and couldn’t read it fast enough, but, by the end, it felt less like a thriller and more a story of one friend trying to force the other into revealing her secrets. I was missing the thrilling elements and, at some point, just stopped caring about what happened to any of them. None of them really changed and secrets still hung over this friendship that probably should have been long over by then. Sadly, this did not live up to my expectations, but I can’t say I didn’t find myself thoroughly invested in that novel manuscript.

Abby and Gia have been best friends since they were children, but couldn’t be more different. Gia is an heiress who always gets what she wants, whether it’s things or boys, even if it’s a boy Abby’s interested in. Abby is the daughter of the hired help, pulled into Gia’s orbit and bound to always give over to Gia’s whims and fancies. Greece and Gia’s family home there holds a special place in their friendship, and haunts them from the time they were eighteen after a tragedy unfolded. Years later, Gia is married to a wealthy businessman Abby doesn’t like or trust, but her father has passed and left his family with almost nothing. Now needing to sell her family’s Greek home, Gia and her husband are working on renovations, causing strife between them. But Gia talks her friend and her brother Benny into joining her in Sweden for a birthday trip. Only Gia never shows up. Concerned, Abby and Benny head to Greece, where they find an empty estate and Gia’s latest manuscript filled with breadcrumbs that just might lead to her whereabouts.

Ladykiller did such a great job of hooking and reeling me in that I expected to really enjoy this one and be blown away by how it ended. Unfortunately, it lost all its steam for me about three quarters of the way through. There isn’t even the satisfaction of any kind of wrap up because the ending is left wide open with almost nothing resolved. There are a bunch of secrets that are revealed, but none of them Gia’s, which just made everything in this novel feel manufactured by her so she could get the answers she wanted. Which kind of makes sense considering she’s had everything given to her on a silver platter. It kind of made me feel bad for Abby because she always gets the short end of the stick when it comes to Gia, but I enjoyed her romance, so at least she didn’t come out of this empty handed.

As spoiled as she is, I actually really liked Gia’s character. She absolutely pulls off being that kind of spoiled heiress, the kind who thinks she can do whatever she wants and get away with it because, well, she does. Always. I don’t really understand why Benny humored her so much and why Abby was her friend for so long, but they are bound together by a tragedy from when they were eighteen, even if I think that should have spelled the end to everything. Anyways, Gia was remarkably well characterized, complete with a complexity I didn’t expect. There’s more to her than meets the eye, and certain talents behind her polished exterior. I found myself fully immersed in her manuscript, but eventually found myself not believing a word. It was gripping, though, and I think that’s the only element that really gave me that thriller feeling. It ends off abruptly after setting the stage with a possibly murderous husband and strange guests who have more secrets between them than I think even Abby had.

Abby herself wasn’t quite as interesting and fascinating as her friend. I often found myself impatient to get away from her story in the present day to return to Gia’s manuscript. She’s hardworking, but agrees to take some time off to travel to Sweden, otherwise I don’t really know who she is. Her entire identity felt wrapped up in who she is in relation to Gia. She’s Gia’s friend, she has a crush on Benny, and she’s hiding secrets. Otherwise she felt perfectly bland. If it weren’t for her secrets and her romance, which went far too smoothly for my tastes, I don’t think I would have remembered her, and she’s telling half the story. I felt bad for her, though, because all of her secrets are forced out into the open while Gia gets to pout and keep all of hers. It felt terribly unfair, but I could guess all of Abby’s secrets a mile away. It made me wonder what, exactly, the point of this story was.

What I did love, though, was the setting. Thanks to Gia’s manuscript, it’s primarily set in Greece. I loved the feeling of lounging in the warm sand and swimming in the sea. It felt idyllic, like a perfect summer vacation. Even just walking around in the town, no matter how hot it was, was delightful. It was fantastic to get to meet so many secondary characters, and it was fun to find out who was real and who wasn’t. But I really enjoyed getting this glimpse into the lives and dramas of the wealthy. I loved traveling to Greece in this book, so that was definitely a highlight for me,

The story, unfortunately, just fell apart to me. I had hoped for a story where Abby and Benny had to race against the clock to find Gia. Instead I just got a woman being forced to divulge her secrets. Of course, Abby being sent some mysterious messages felt suitably thrilling for the first half of the novel, but everything else just failed to hit the right mark. Once Gia’s manuscript ended, so did my interest. Everything from that point just felt too easy and lackluster. Even Gia’s guests weren’t really interesting once their secrets came to light. It just gave more things for the reader to not believe, and it was tiring after a while. I stopped caring about all the secrets because, as far as I was concerned, this was a novel built on secrets upon secrets and I no longer found myself caring if one secret led to another.

Ladykiller could have been a truly thrilling read. It had all the elements, all the right characters, all the intriguing motivations. But it fell apart thanks to a relatively thin foundation, because secrets really don’t hold up well enough to support a complex, thrilling story. I loved reading Gia’s manuscript, but Abby was boring to me, and I couldn’t fathom why Abby decided to stick by Gia and remain her friend. This could have been amazing, but it ultimately fell apart for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

I am so thankful for this ARC. however, I have really struggled to connect with the characters and stay interested.

Ladykiller is a riveting thriller that masterfully intertwines setting, atmosphere, drama, and murder into a compelling story. A well-crafted thriller that hits all the right notes. Katherine Wood's talent for building atmosphere, creating drama, and delivering a gripping murder mystery makes this book a must-read for fans of the genre. The seamless integration of these elements, along with the delicious twists and turns, results in a story that is both captivating and unforgettable. I enjoyed this so much!

Thank you to Bantam books for allowing me to read Ladykiller by Katherine Wood. This book was a little boring but, I am glad that I stayed with it to enjoy the twisty ride.

#hurricanereading

"Time is like water; some of it is clear and some of it is murky, but the more that stands between you and the past you’ve buried, the less you can see it."

This a fun yet pretty basic and formulaic thriller. It kept me occupied when I didn't have electricity and I tore through it

Thank you netgalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine.

Thank you @netgalley for my advance copy. I am OBSESSED with this cover. I swear its the cover of the summer. This is my first time reading Wood and it will definitely not be my last. Her writing is so well done. This novel was a bit on the "soapy" side and I did not expect it. I would call it "thriller light" however, the drama was engaging and I found myself wanting to see what happened next. This was a perfect popcorn thriller.

It’s incredibly difficult to assign value to a book like this, which is essentially a conscious ripoff of an older, classic book. It’s a Ripley rip-off, undoubtedly, but what was the goal in publishing this? Is it an update to a familiar tale? Did the author actually think they were producing something novel? Or is the purpose to consciously revive a previously successful plot writ large by another author and simply say “hey, I know this is a great premise for a story and I’m just here to entertain?”

If it’s the last of those then I have little issue with this book, which keeps your turning the pages, successfully mimics the air of Highsmith’s work, and is, in the end, at least satisfactorily entertaining.

Tougher if the book was meant to stand on its own as an original or even semi-original narrative. Even as a “new spin” on an old trope, there isn’t much to go on here. And like most imitations, it fails to capture the sense of place, the depth of story, and (in this specific case) the sense of menace that made the original so compelling.

There have been many Ripley-derivative novels over the years that have succeeded in doing something new with the concept. This is fine as a way to divert your attention for a few hours, but I didn’t see anything original or uniquely compelling here.

I love an unreliable narrator and honestly, Gia is definitely on par with the best of them. This book reminded me a little bit of Gone Girl with the book vs diary in this one. I am thinking we might see Gia pop up again in another novel because she’s just that good.

This was such a fun sexy thriller! You get the pov of gias manuscript and real time ! A summer in Greece with spice, murder, and money lots and lots of money! And you know how that makes people act! The drama and people you just get sucked into the fun of what’s happening! Toward the end it got a little more fast paced. I thought the end was a little predictable, it’s felt a little yea I saw that coming. But that didn’t make it any less fun!
3.5⭐️
Thank you to Bantam, Penguin Random House and Netgalley for my gifted copy.

The last 50% of this book was probably 4-5 stars for me but the first half just dragged for me. I know the author was trying to set the scene but I wasn’t getting enough nuggets of information to keep me wanting to flip the pages. I think if Abby’s POV had went just a little quicker with the manuscript POV the intrigue would have been higher. I did love all the twists and how they were all connected in the last half of the book. The author did a great job with the setting and character development. I don’t mind an ambiguous ending but I know a lot of people aren’t fans of those. It didn’t bother me here. I’m looking forward to more books from this author.

When a woman vanishes from her remote Greek island estate, her best friend from childhood races to find her thanks to clues in the manuscript she left behind. Katherine loads up the suspense with the sun-soaked backdrop of gorgeous Greece and the glamorously decadent world of the uber-rich. This is a story that will have you longing for a vacation under the hot Mediterranean sun…but maybe with a little less murder.

When do we stop believing the truth we're told versus the truth we see or intuitively feel? For Abby, she feels like something isn't right with Gia's life. As she and Benny dig deeper into the truth versus Gia's version of reality, they're left with too many questions and not enough answers. until suddenly the truth is there. But do they want to know it? And will their lives be changed if the truth comes out? This one will keep you guessing!

When her lifelong friend invites her to an island birthday party, Abby is happy to accept. But when her friend disappears before Abby arrives on island, Abby looks to an unfinished manuscript for clues. Katherine Wood reveals glimpses of Gia's fabulous....or is it.....through an unfinished manuscript. Abby must decide how much is truth and how much is fiction. The backstory and the setting is skillfully written but the story leaves readers to reach their own conclusions at the end.

Gia and Abby have been best friends since they were teens. Gia is a very rich heiress and Abby is the daughter of the chef for Gia’s family. A tragedy occurred when they were eighteen, right before Abby was heading off to college. This has kept them hiding a secret all these years. Now, Abby is a lawyer and Gia is currently in love with someone new, Garrett. Gia wants Abby to travel to Greece for her wedding, but Abby declines. Abby also tries to convince Gia not to marry so quickly.
Gia is finally able to convince Abby to take time off of work to reunite in Sweden to celebrate Gia’s birthday and see the Northern Lights. Benny will be joining them so it will just be those three. When Abby and Benny arrive, Gia is nowhere to be found. Text messages relate that she is too ill to travel and she hopes they have a good time. Suspicion grows for Abby and Benny and they decide to travel to Greece to locate her. What they find at the estate in Greece is a manuscript that Gia has been writing, with no ending. And Gia is missing.
This story is told from Abby’s perspective as well as the perspective of Gia in her unfinished manuscript. The time line is before and after Gia goes missing.
This story is filled with lies, deceptions, sex, alcohol, and killings. Who is telling the truth? Who is lying? The story has so many twists and turns, that the reader will not be able to tell who to believe. I was totally engrossed as I was reading. I also was wishing I was in Greece as the authors description of the islands and the surrounding waters was so inviting. I loved her style of writing!
If you love a good mystery with many twists and turns, filled with good wine, some sex, lies, maybe some truths, you will love this book.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for allowing me to read the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Published on July 9, 2024.

I really liked this book! It was a mystery that was super addicting! The characters were intricate enough to draw you in and make want to know all their secrets! The setting was amazing, definitely gives you those vacation vibes with the Greece setting and the jet setting the characters did. It was also one of those stories that just keeps you guessing and wondering what was actually the truth with so many unreliable narrators and the back and forth with the facts of the story. Definitely a great Summer thriller that begs to be read poolside!

I gave this book 4 stars. I liked the story line and characters! I wish the ending gave more information.